Rosselló seeks 'equal treatment,' Trump gives recovery efforts a '10'

President Donald Trump (R) shakes hands with Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

President Donald Trump (C) speaks to the media during a meeting with Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico (L) in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. The two were joined by Vice President Mike Pence. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico is seen during a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

Members of the US military deliver supplies to the to the victims of Hurricane Maria in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico on Tuesday. Photo by Thais Llorca/EPA-EFE

A patient is transferred to the USNS Comfort from the 14th Combat Support Hospital in Humacao, Puerto Rico on Tuesday. Photo by Capt. Christopher Merian/Department of Defense

A man participates in a protest Wednesday calling on Congress and the White House for a recovery plan for Puerto Rico. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

People participate in a protest calling on Congress and the White House for relief for Puerto Rico on Wednesday on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

A Puerto Rican flag waves in the air during a protest calling on Congress and the White House for a recovery plan Wednesday on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

People participate in a protest calling on Congress and the White House for a recovery plan and recovery package for hurricane victims. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

A man participates in a protest calling on Congress and the White House for a recovery plan for Puerto Rico. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

People participate in a protest calling on Congress and the White House for a recovery plan and recovery package for hurricane victims. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

President Donald Trump (R) listens as Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico (L) speaks during a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

President Donald Trump speaks to the media during a meeting with Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico, in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

President Donald Trump (2nd L) speaks to the media during a meeting with Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico (L)in the Oval Office Thursday. The two were joined by Vice President Mike Pence (2nd R) and Tom Bossert (R), Homeland Security adviser. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

"What we're searching for is the best resources for our people so that we can get out of the emergency so that we can stabilize and rebuild again," Rosselló said while standing next to Rubio on Capitol Hill.

Maria devastated Puerto Rico weeks after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma did damage to Texas, Florida and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The federal government faced criticism -- including a fiery speech by San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz leveled directly at President Donald Trump -- that its response in Puerto Rico was slower after Hurricane Maria than it had been in the wake of the other storms. Trump blamed the slow recovery on the logistics of sending aid to Puerto Rico, an island, and on the territory's existing infrastructure and financial problems.

Rosselló said he planned to encourage Congress to pass a nearly $5 billion funding package, a loan Trump requested for the financially burdened government. The Senate also is considering a $36.5 billion general disaster relief package, passed by the House last week, that includes relief aid for Puerto Rico.

On Tuesday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said 1,700 personnel were in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, in addition to 20,000 other federal workers.

In Washington Wednesday, demonstrators marched from Capitol Hill to FEMA headquarters to demand a bigger response from the government on hurricane relief for Puerto Rico -- as well as other U.S. locations hit by Hurricanes Irma and Harvey.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, "we have not forgotten you.

"You are our brothers and sisters. You are our fellow U.S. citizens. And you are part of our hearts."

Some demonstrators at the rally criticized Trump, saying his reaction to Puerto Rico's plight wasn't on par with how he handled other recent disasters.

"With Puerto Rico, he didn't even try," Melissa Mark-Viverito, speaker of the New York City Council, told The Washington Post. "He's shown a real disrespect for the people of Puerto Rico. It's like he is kicking us while we are down."

The president, who's visited the island, has voiced consistent support for the territory since the disaster -- but he's also taken some criticism for remarking about Puerto Rico's economic situation.

"The wonderful people of Puerto Rico, with their unmatched spirit, know how bad things were before the H's. I will always be with them!" Trump said in a tweet last week.